Alvarez beats Golovkin with majority decision win

AFP, LAS VEGAS

Canelo Alvarez punches Gennady Golovkin in their WBC/WBA middleweight title fight at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday.

Photo: AFP

Mexico’s Saul “Canelo” Alvarez on Saturday ended Gennady Golovkin’s unbeaten reign as unified middleweight champion, battling to victory by majority decision in a pulsating rematch. Alvarez showed skill and durability to outlast Golovkin in another attritional contest between the two evenly matched rivals at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, one year after they fought to a controversial draw at the same venue.

Alvarez inflicted the first defeat of Kazakh slugger Golovkin’s career after two judges scored it 115-113 in his favor, with another judge scoring it even at 114-114.

“I am a great fighter and I showed it tonight,” Alvarez said, who improves to 50-1-2.

Golovkin, who fell to 38-1-1 after the loss, left the ring without speaking to the media.

While Golovkin was widely believed to have been unlucky not to win their first encounter last year, there was no controversy about Saturday’s outcome.

“We had a great fight, the one we expected the first time around,” Golovkin’s trainer Abel Sanchez said.

“I had it close going into the 12th round. We had good judges who saw it from different angles — I can’t complain about the decision, but it’s close enough to warrant a third fight,” he added.

The fighters fought cagily, reluctant to trade heavy blows.

Golovkin appeared to edge clear in the early rounds, working well behind his stiff left jab, but Alvarez remained unruffled.

The Mexican, who had been accused of “running” in the first fight, came forward relentlessly and dominated the middle part of the fight.

On all three judges’ cards Alvarez dominated the middle rounds from the fifth through to the eighth, building a handy lead to defend in the closing stages.

Golovkin was never able to press home his advantage. With Golovkin needing a big finish in the 12th, Alvarez again proved up to the challenge, shrugging off an early uppercut to hold on for the win.

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